Falcon9 replica

Falcon 9 is a reusable, two-stage rocket designed and manufactured by SpaceX for the reliable and safe transport of people and payloads into Earth orbit and beyond. Falcon 9 is the world’s first orbital class reusable rocket. Reusability allows SpaceX to refly the most expensive parts of the rocket, which in turn drives down the cost of space access.

Falcon 9

Overview

HEIGHT

70 m / 229.6 ft

DIAMETER

3.7 m / 12 ft

MASS

549,054 kg / 1,207,920 lb

PAYLOAD TO LEO

22,800 kg / 50,265 lb

PAYLOAD TO GTO

8,300 kg / 18,300 lb

PAYLOAD TO MARS

4,020 kg / 8,860 lb

Falcon 9

First stage

Falcon 9’s first stage incorporates nine Merlin engines and aluminum-lithium alloy tanks containing liquid oxygen and rocket-grade kerosene (RP-1) propellant.Falcon 9 generates more than 1.7 million pounds of thrust at sea level.

The nine Merlin engines on the first stage are gradually throttled near the end of first-stage flight to limit launch vehicle acceleration as the rocket’s mass decreases with the burning of fuel. These engines are also used to reorient the first stage prior to reentry and to decelerate the vehicle for landing.

NUMBER OF ENGINES

THRUST AT SEA LEVEL

7,607 kN / 1,710,000 lbf

THRUST IN VACUUM

8,227 kN / 1,849,500 lbf

The Falcon 9 first stage is equipped with four landing legs made of state-of-the-art carbon fiber with aluminum honeycomb.

Placed symmetrically around the base of the rocket, they are stowed at the base of the vehicle and deploy just prior to landing.

engine

merlin

SEA LEVEL

VACUUM

Merlin is a family of rocket engines developed by SpaceX for use on its Falcon 1, Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles. Merlin engines use a rocket grade kerosene (RP-1) and liquid oxygen as rocket propellants in a gas-generator power cycle. The Merlin engine was originally designed for recovery and reuse.

PROPELLANT

LOX / RP-1

THRUST

845 kN / 190,000 lbf

Falcon 9 launches Dragon to the International Space Station from Launch Complex 39A

Falcon 9 first and second stages after separating in flight

Falcon 9 lifts off with its Iridium-5 payload

Falcon 9 lands on the droneship

Close-up of Falcon 9's Merlin engines during liftoff

Falcon 9 leaves a trail of light as it lifts off from Vandenberg Air Force Base

Falcon 9 lifts off with Dragon for an in-flight test of the Crew Dragon abort system

Falcon 9 lifts off with its Iridium-8 payload

Falcon 9 with its Radarsat payload at sunset before launch

Falcon 9 lands at Cape Canaveral

Falcon 9 vertical with its Iridium payload at moonrise

FALCON 9

Overview

First stage